UNICEF Annual Report 2014 South Sudan, Republic of

Transcription

1 UNICEF Annual Report 2014 South Sudan, Republic of Executive Summary The lives of children in South Sudan in 2014 were shaped by the grave consequences of the political conflict which broke out in Juba in December 2013 and spread to Jonglei, Upper Nile and Unity States. Nearly 750,000 children were displaced by fighting, food insecurity and a lack of basic services. The estimated number of children suffering from severe acute malnutrition doubled from a pre-crisis estimated of 108,000 to 235,000. A cholera outbreak further threatened the lives of children. It is estimated that 400,000 children left school due to the conflict, while 12,000 were recruited and used by armed forces and groups. UNICEF refocused its country programme to prioritize the humanitarian response, including establishing a dedicated nutrition section to respond to nutrition crisis. A Field Operations section was also established, and hubs in conflict-affected Bentiu and Bor became fully-fledged field offices. A Level 3 Corporate Emergency was declared in February which continued throughout the year. A variety of strategies were adopted to scale up the response, both inside Protection of Civilian (PoC) and internally displaced persons (IDP) sites and expanding throughout the year to respond to IDPs in hard to reach areas. Through these efforts, 880,000 conflict-affected children were reached with lifesaving health, nutrition, water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH), education and child protection interventions. A key strategy was the innovative rapid response mechanism (RRM) developed in partnership with the World Food Programme (WFP). These missions included technical specialists from UNICEF and partners who assessed and immediately responded to the situation on the ground, reaching otherwise inaccessible locations with few or no non-government organisations (NGOs) present. Thirty-four RRM missions were undertaken, reaching 603,000 people, including 132,000 children under five, often in contested or opposition-controlled areas. Rapid family tracing and reunification (RapidFTR) was another innovation introduced to expedite the reunification of separated and unaccompanied children. Mass displacement, destruction of infrastructure and reduction in basic services exacerbated the high disease burden in South Sudan. A cholera outbreak began in May, resulting in 6,421 cases, including 167 deaths. UNICEF set up the first Cholera Treatment Centre in Juba, with UNICEF staff taking a direct role in case management and training of health workers. Over 689,000 malaria cases were treated through UNICEF support, and 780,000 insecticide-treated nets distributed. A decline in measles cases was observed since April, after integrated campaigns by UNICEF, the World Health Organisation (WHO) and partners, with 2.4 million children vaccinated across the country. These results were achieved through increased operational and strategic partnerships. Close collaboration with WFP resulted in the establishment of the RRM as well as the Nutrition Scale Up Action Plan. The Action Plan accelerated efforts in response to the nutrition crisis, with 93,204 children treated for severe acute malnutrition by the end of the year. On-going work with the Ministry of Health (MoH), Ministry of Electricity, Dams, Irrigation and Water Resources and the Carter Centre reduced cases of Guinea Worm from 113 to 77, with the goal of eliminating

2 Guinea Worm from South Sudan by the end of Advocacy based on the Monitoring and Reporting Mechanism (MRM) was used to gain commitments from Government and opposition leaders to end grave child rights violations. UNICEF supported the provision of birth notifications to 131,000 children under five. In conflictaffected areas, UNICEF lobbied Government to allow NGOs providing health services to deliver birth notifications, including in areas outside Government control. Through the Global Partnership for Education, UNICEF supported the development of South Sudan s first national curriculum, mainstreaming essential peace building elements. In order to provide the humanitarian response to scale, all partners UN agencies, NGOs, Government and donors prioritized the immediate lifesaving response over creating an enabling environment to realize the rights of children. Decreased Government resources were available for children: 64 per cent of the latest budget was allocated to security, leaving seven per cent for education and five per cent for health. UNICEF s major shortfall for 2014 was the development agenda, with policy and capacity development work slowed to focus on the emergency. Budget Sector Working Groups were not convened, preventing UNICEF s participation in the 2014/15 budget planning processes. Towards the end of the year, the policy agenda was revived, with the Convention on the Rights of the Child signed and waiting to be deposited in New York. The Social Protection Policy Framework, prepared in 2013, was passed in November 2014, paving the way for increased engagement on social protection in Throughout 2015, the UNICEF South Sudan will adopt a combination of interventions along the traditional humanitarian to development spectrum to realize the rights of children across the country. Humanitarian Assistance One year after the conflict began in December 2013, children are still under daily threat in South Sudan. Over 1.9 million people, over half of whom are children, have fled their homes. This includes 102,336 people in PoCs and 488,500 people who have fled to neighbouring countries. Over 90 per cent of IDPs are in host communities, whose own resources have been depleted. Many gains made since Independence, including increased access to immunization, nutrition treatment and safe drinking water, have been lost. Basic services are still not functioning in most of the conflict-affected areas. Amongst the major concerns: Rates of severe acute malnutrition (SAM) have doubled from a year ago, from an estimated 108,000 to 235,000 children; The health system was weakened, with 184 health facilities in conflict-affected areas nonfunctional; Forty per cent of WASH facilities in the conflict-affected states have been destroyed; An estimated 400,000 children are no longer in school due to the conflict; Moregrave child rights violations were recorded in 2014 than in the two previous years, including 12,000 children, mostly boys, who are believed to have been recruited and used by armed forces and groups. The complexity of the operating environment in South Sudan constrains the humanitarian response. Shifting frontlines and insecurity affected the delivery of services. A third of RRM missions were delayed or cancelled due to insecurity. There are counties in affected areas only reached in December 2014, a year after the start of the conflict due to chronic insecurity. Fighting has also had an impact on UNICEF s response inside the PoCs, in Bentiu and Malakal 2

3 in particular. The ethnic dimension of the conflict directly affected national staff of humanitarian organizations, complicating their deployment as harassment intensified and the number of ethnically-motivated attacks increased in the second half of The rainy season hampered service delivery and transportation, with roads impassable making prepositioning of supplies impossible and transportation very costly. UNICEF relied on air assets, increasing the cost of operations. Despites these challenges, and in response to the acute needs in the conflict-affected states, UNICEF scaled up its interventions in 2014, and in particular since the activation of the Level 3 Emergency in February To date, UNICEF and partners have: Treated 93,204 children for severe malnutrition; Through the integrated vaccinations campaign and RRMs, 879,865 children in the conflictaffected states have been vaccinated against with measles and 837,645 children against polio; Provided safe water to 495,750 people and safe sanitation to 273,650 people; Supported 77,750 children in receiving a basic education, including supplies; Provided 139,767 children with critical child protection interventions, including psychosocial support and family tracing. These achievements were made through a gradual and strategic shift from life-saving assistance inside PoCs to the delivery of services throughout the conflict-affected states. Diversified implementation modalities increased the outreach of UNICEF interventions including the expansion of field presence and traditional partnerships, and investing in direct implementation by UNICEF teams where there was limited to no partner presence. A Nutrition Scale Up Plan was developed with WFP and partners to accelerate the nutrition response. Priority was given to creating a protective environment for children who bear the brunt of the crisis. As global Cluster Lead agency, UNICEF led and coordinated the Nutrition, WASH, Education clusters and the Child Protection Sub-Cluster throughout the crisis; as well as providing key leadership in the area of Health, supplying 90 per cent of the vaccines in South Sudan. UNICEF also provided consistent supply pipelines for the entire Education, Nutrition and WASH core pipelines. These interventions were critical to reduce the vulnerability of children, and in particular to: Avoid excess child mortality, in particular in overcrowded settings, by reducing the prevalence of water-borne diseases; Mitigate the risk of major disease outbreaks; Lower rates of acute malnutrition with the resumption of nutrition services; Reduce the psychosocial distress of children by providing safe, community-level recreation spaces; Support the resumption of learning activities in remote areas affected by the conflict, though the challenge of the non-payment of teachers salaries remains. In 2015, UNICEF will sustain the gains made in 2014, and scale up lifesaving humanitarian interventions for affected populations, balancing continued support to IDP sites while reaching out to vulnerable and underserved areas. UNICEF is maximizing the dry season to preposition supplies; increase coverage of services; and improve PoC and IDP sites. Cross border supply corridors, cross line movements and diversified transportation modalities, including barges, are being scaled up. 3

4 Equity Case Study The Rapid Response Mechanism was launched in March 2014 as an innovative approach to provide immediate humanitarian assistance to affected populations in hard to reach locations. As of March 2014, 800,000 people had been internally displaced since the crisis started with close to 100,000 people sheltered in UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) PoCs and IDP sites. Ninety per cent of those in need were living outside these sites, in locations extremely difficult to access due to security, logistical and human resources constraints. Guided by the South Sudan 2014 Crisis Response Plan, UNICEF s response plan and the mandate of UNICEF as captured in the Core Commitments to Children in Humanitarian Action, UNICEF developed the RRM to address critical gaps in humanitarian needs of affected populations beyond PoCs and IDP sites where the situation was fluid and the population difficult to reach. The RRM was developed jointly with WFP, and implemented in coordination with the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) and partners. Considering the volatility of the situation, the severity of logistical and access constraints, the operating mode of the integrated RRM is highly flexible. The RRM missions are mobile teams of technical specialists including WASH, Health, Nutrition, Child Protection and Education who assess and respond to the situation on the ground. The multi-sector response is designed to adapt to a fast changing environment, ensuring immediate actions are taken along with assessments using a no regret approach, and whilst ensuring risk mitigation measures are taken, including deploying international security and logistics staff. The RRM has proven to be a highly successful response model. In 2014, UNICEF conducted 34 missions in hard to reach locations in Jonglei, Unity and Upper Nile - Akobo, Melut, Nyal, Mayandit, Haat, Kodok, Pagak, Pochalla, Lankien, Old Fangak, Walgak, Jiech, Wau Shilluk, Lul, Leer, Koch, Nihaldu, Duk, Gorwai, New Fangak, Kaldak, Keich Kon, Ngop, Wathjak, Pathai, Kamel, Gum, Pagil, Ulang, Kadet, Mading, Buaw, Tuarkei and Panyikang County. The RRM is an example of equity in humanitarian action, supporting particularly disadvantaged groups in hard to reach geographic areas and areas which are contested or under opposition control. Through these missions, UNICEF is reaching children who would not otherwise be reached. The missions are also used to generate information on the nutrition situation which inform the Integrated Phase Classification analysis and are used to encourage partners to move into areas with high rates of malnutrition and no services available. UNICEF is also conducting follow up missions to the same areas through teams comprising field-based and Juba-based colleagues, linking up to equity programming at the state level. Through these missions, 603,000 people have been reached including 127,000 children under five, including: 128,000 children under 15 vaccinated against measles and 98,500 ; Close to 78,000 children under five screened for malnutrition and 2,800 new SAM cases admitted; 253,600 people received WASH supplies and 72,700 people were provided with access to safe drinking water; 2,900 unaccompanied, separated and missing children registered and tracing commenced, and 3,300 children reached critical child protection services; 30,000 children and adolescents benefited from access to education in emergency. With the on-going crisis, access to essential services was severely curtailed due to insecurity, 4

5 large-scale displacement, destruction or closure of health facilities and schools, withdrawal of implementing partners, and relocation of health, education and social workers. The rain further aggravated the situation of affected populations, as well as efforts to reach these populations with humanitarian services. In this challenging operating environment, the RRM was critical to: Expand UNICEF s outreach beyond the PoCs from reaching 90,000 people in March to 603,000 in December 2014; Provide immediate life-saving assistance to IDPs and host communities in locations that had not yet been reached; Support the re-establishment of partners presence and the resumption of basic services; Collect data on the nutritional status of children as part of the joint WFP/UNICEF scale up plan; Identify, register and trace unaccompanied and separated children, with 38 per cent of the total caseload of unaccompanied and separated children have been identified through RRM missions; Build the capacity of community-based networks rapid training of community workers; establishment of networks (Parent-Teacher Association, Child Protection etc.); and orientation of teachers. These achievements were made possible as the RRM was tailored to take into account issues of security, the shifting frontline and logistics which slow the deployment of staff and delivery of supplies. The rapid response model has now been adopted by the wider humanitarian community in South Sudan. Pooled funding, such as the Common Humanitarian Fund, has allocated support for the creation and expansion of mobile teams. The RRM was recognized by the humanitarian community as an implementation modality that played a critical role in scaling up the response in 2014, and was fully adopted for the Strategic Response Plan for In 2015, the RRM will continue to be used to reach affected populations. Medium term sustainability will be key, with a focus on follow-up missions and extending partnerships in areas already reached through previous RRM missions. UNICEF will increase its remote field presence, in particular during the dry season, where the security situation allows. Field Offices will support RRMs missions within their respective state to decentralize coordination and response. Should the conflict escalate, the RRM will be the main response model to access areas close to the frontline and where there are pockets of affected populations that are otherwise inaccessible. In this regard, negotiations with parties to the conflict will be key to sustain the gains made in terms of access, and in particular to increase cross line missions by road. Summary Notes and Acronyms ACT - Artemisinin-based Combination Therapy BMO Beneficial microorganism BtL - Back to Learning C4D - Communication for development CEDAW - Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women CHSS - County Health System Strengthening CLTS - Community-Led Total Sanitation CMAM - Community Management of Acute Malnutrition COHA - Cash on Hand Accounts CoP - Community of Practice CPMP - Country Programme Management Plan CPWG - Child protection working groups 5

6 cvdpv - Circulating vaccine derived polio virus DCT - Direct cash transfer DFAM - Division of Financial and Administrative Management EiE Education in emergencies EMIS Education Management Information System e-pas electronic Performance Appraisal System FAO - Food and Agriculture Organization FSNMS - Food Security and Nutrition Monitoring System FTR - Family tracing and reunification GAM - Global acute malnutrition GBV - Gender-based violence GPE- Global Partnership for Education iccm - integrated community case management ICT - Information and communication technology IDP - Internally displaced person IEC - Information, education and communication IMCI - Integrated management of childhood illnesses IMEP Integrated Monitoring and Evaluation System imncs - integrated Maternal, Newborn and Child Survival IMSAM - Integrated management of severe acute malnutrition IPC - Integrated Phase Classification IYCF - Infant and young child feeding LLITN - Long-lasting insecticide treated net MAM - Moderate acute malnutrition MEDIWR - Ministry of Electricity, Dams, Irrigation and Water Resources MoEST - Ministry of Education, Science and Technology MoH - Ministry of Health MRM - monitoring and reporting mechanism NGO - Non-governmental organization NID - National immunization day NISSP - National Information System for Social Protection NIWG - Nutrition Information Working Group OCHA - Organization for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs ODF - Open defecation free OTP - Outpatient therapeutic feeding programme PBR - Programme Budget Review PCA Programme Cooperation Agreement PEP - Post-Exposure Prophylaxis PER Performance Evaluation on Review PMTCT - Prevention of mother to child transmission PoC - Protection of Civilian PPE - Property, Plant and Equipment PTA - Parent-Teacher Association RapidFTR Rapid family tracing and reunification RCC - Restorative community conferencing RRM - Rapid response mechanism RUSF - Ready-to-use supplementary food RUTF - Ready-to-use therapeutic food SAM - Severe acute malnutrition SPLA - Sudan People s Liberation Army SMART - Standardized Monitoring and Assessment of Relief and Transitions 6

7 smoh - State Ministry of Health SOP - Standard Operating Procedure SSDA - South Sudan Democratic Army SSOP - Simplified Standard Operating Procedure SWA Sanitation and Water for All ToA - Table of Authority TT - Tetanus-Toxoid UNDP United Nations Development Programme UNMISS - United Nations Mission in South Sudan USAID United States Agency for International Development WIMS - Water information management system WFP - World Food Programme Capacity Development In 2014, progress was halted in terms of capacity development in conflict-affected areas. Thousands of trained professionals have been displaced; other staff cannot work in affected areas due to the ethnic dimension of the conflict. UNICEF shifted from sustainable capacity development for communities and the Government to scaling up training and technical assistance to ensure partner capacity to provide basic services. This included on-the-job training for service providers through RRMs. Directly, or with the Government and NGO partners, UNICEF trained 159 health workers on prevention of mother to child transmission of HIV; 2,200 teachers and education personnel to provide education services to conflict-affected children; 800 people on child protection in emergencies; and 126 people to monitor and report grave child rights violations. As part of the cholera response, UNICEF and partners trained 30 chlorinators; 50 health workers on cholera case management; and 1,612 volunteers, teachers and social mobilizers to disseminate lifesaving messages, contributing to a slowing of the spread of the disease. A community hygiene promoter programme was launched in Eastern Equatoria to integrate routine hygiene promotion with cholera preparedness, strengthening local health offices. A capacity mapping of nutrition partners showed poor capacity remained to deliver quality nutrition services. UNICEF staff and partners trained 1,865 government and partner staff on severe acute malnutrition (SAM) treatment, Infant and Young Child Feeding (IYCF) and nutrition surveys. UNICEF supported the formation of technical working groups on Community Management of Acute Malnutrition, Nutrition Information and IYCF to sustain capacity gains in these areas. Twenty partner staff were trained in gender-based violence (GBV) prevention and response, who will train other partners in UNICEF and partners provided basic training on GBV to 165 social workers and community mobilizers. Education officials, teachers and community members were trained to incorporate life skills and peace education into students learning, promoting a culture of peace and resulting in the integration of these materials into the first national curriculum. UNICEF supported the National Bureau of Statistics on specific surveys (Malaria Indicator Survey, IDP Survey) and overall capacity strengthening. Enhancing local monitoring and statistics will contribute to sustained evidence-based planning and policymaking. 7

8 Evidence Generation, Policy Dialogue and Advocacy Policy dialogue was curtailed as partners the Government, UN agencies, NGOs and donors focused on the humanitarian crisis. The National Social Protection Framework, awaiting approval at the end of 2013, was passed only in November. The Youth Development Policy, drafted in 2013, was delayed throughout the year. A detailed Advocacy Strategy was developed focused on ending grave violations of children s rights and child recruitment; meeting critical humanitarian needs, especially nutrition; protecting humanitarian access; and promoting tolerance and peacebuilding. Advocacy continued throughout the year with all parties to the conflict to protect the rights of civilians, including children, and to ensure safe and unhindered humanitarian access. UNICEF advocacy resulted in the signing of Learning Spaces as Zones of Peace communique increasing the awareness of education stakeholders on their accountability to protect children. Following advocacy with MoH, UNICEF and partners were delegated the authority to issue birth notifications in IDP areas. Evidence generation was key to the humanitarian response. UNICEF supported the National Bureau of Statistics, including financial and technical support for an IDP Survey to generate information on IDPs including an understanding on potential areas of return, to increase services in these areas. UNICEF increased in-house expertise to coordinate evidence generation on the nutrition crisis. Through the Nutrition Information Working Group, chaired by UNICEF, available data was improved by: increasing the number of standardized monitoring and assessment of relief and transition (SMART) surveys; introducing small-scale SMART surveys to provide data where fullscale surveys are not possible; and the integration of nutrition data into the World Food Programme - Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) Food Security and Nutrition Monitoring System. Improved nutrition information contributed to the Integrated Phase Classification (IPC) analysis and the calculation of caseloads allowing accurate prepositioning of supplies. An innovative online data platform was introduced to conduct a Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices survey on social cohesion. An Education Management Information System (EMIS) Unit was re-established in the Ministry of Education, and staff trained in advance of the 2015 Annual Education Census. To strengthen the WASH sector data management and evidence for the mobilization of additional resources, UNICEF strengthened the Water Information Management System (WIMS) in four states. Partnerships To support lifesaving humanitarian services, UNICEF scaled up operational partnerships with community-based organizations and national and international NGOs from 64 to 88. UNICEF used its technical expertise and Cluster leadership to increase the capacity of these partners to provide quality services within relevant global standards for humanitarian situations. Close coordination with partners with pre-crisis presence RRM target areas, or willingness to set up services, maximized the impact of missions by ensuring sustained services. To ensure the quality of nutrition information, UNICEF collaborated with the United States 8

9 Centres for Disease Control and Prevention to validate survey protocols and results. UNICEF also continued its partnership with the Carter Centre and National Guinea Worm Eradication Directorate to eradicate Guinea Worm from South Sudan by the end of UNICEF partnered with academic institutions to study the role of education in peacebuilding (led by the University of Sussex) and the role of counselling in promoting peacebuilding (with the University of Winnipeg), both also engaging the University of Juba. Together with the John Hopkins University, UNICEF and partners established a baseline to understand social norms related to sexual violence. Strategic private sector partnerships included Vestergaard, a life straw water filter producer for promotion and supply of household water filters for Guinea Worm affected areas and Vodafone along with the National Committee of the United Kingdom for the rollout of RapidFTR to trace separated and unaccompanied children. In collaboration with the Government, the private sector, NGOs and local merchants, UNICEF organized the country s first-ever career fairs to provide information on career opportunities to over 300 young persons. UNICEF s support for the inter-ministerial committee of Ministries of Education, Science and Technology and Culture, Youth and Sport resulted in a pool of master trainers on conflict sensitive programming to improve the resilience of education systems. As a result of the emergency, the SUN (Scaling Up Nutrition) initiative was put on hold. Discussions have restarted and a forum will be held in early 2015 to bring together the Government, civil society, UN agencies and the private sector to establish a way forward. External Communication and Public Advocacy Immediately following the outbreak of the conflict in December 2013, UNICEF began and sustained throughout 2014 highly proactive media relations and outreach in order to raise awareness about the needs of children and women affected by the conflict and what UNICEF is doing to meet those needs. Despite significant competition for news coverage, UNICEF South Sudan s communications products and media outreach, including more than 30 press releases, over 100 interviews and frequent presence at UN media briefings in Geneva, resulted in extensive positive coverage of its work and has ensured that issues surrounding children and the rights of children have remained prominent. The Advocacy Strategy was adjusted to focus efforts on supporting resource mobilization and advancing UNICEF South Sudan s key advocacy priorities: ending grave violations of children s rights, in particular child recruitment; meeting critical humanitarian needs, especially nutrition; protecting humanitarian access; and promoting tolerance and peacebuilding. UNICEF South Sudan s communication and advocacy maintained recruitment of children and child malnutrition in particular as high priorities on the national and international agendas. UNICEF South Sudan as a steadily growing social media presence, with nearly 47,000 Facebook fans and close to 3,000 Twitter followers with whom the office communicates regularly, advocating on the on-going needs of the children of South Sudan. The office engaged with UNICEF National Committees, developing multi-media products to support their advocacy and resource mobilization efforts. UNICEF National Committee visits and a Goodwill Ambassador visit were also supported. The communication response to the crisis shifted some activities away from priorities that had 9

10 been planned for 2014: building and strengthening partnerships to advocate for improved rights of children and strengthening media capacity to report on children s issues. Despite this, UNICEF worked with partners to organize celebrations around traditional advocacy opportunities such as the Day of the African Child and the International Day of the Girl Child, in addition to briefings, press conferences, and numerous media events. South-South Cooperation and Triangular Cooperation As the Global Partnership for Education (GPE) Managing Entity, UNICEF provided technical assistance to Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (MoEST) officials to represent South Sudan in two Africa Regional GPE constituency meetings in Kigali, Rwanda in May and in Bujumbura, Burundi in November where nine East and West Africa member countries discussed GPE progress as well as sector performance. This South-South engagement has contributed to increased recognition of the accountability not only to stakeholders within South Sudan but also accountability of sector performance to peer countries that make up the GPE constituency. A good example of this is the persistent lobbying by the MoEST for at least 10 per cent of the national budget to education. UNICEF supported the Government of South Sudan s systematic engagement in initiatives such as Sanitation and Water for All (SWA) and the National Planning for Result Initiative (NPRI). This support has enabled the participation of national counterparts in the above initiatives which will help the country to gain funding and share experience from other countries. The Government s participation and reporting back to SWA ensures accountability to country commitments in accelerating coverage. UNICEF also supported the participation of Government officials in the Africa Community of Practice (CoP) on Cash Transfers, held in Zambia and co-facilitated by UNICEF and the World Bank. The CoP is a strategic platform aims to promote the exchange of experiences on social protection among African countries. The CoP meetings also allow participating countries to showcase their respective best practices and lessons learned on social protection. The Zambia CoP Meeting allowed the Government authorities working in social protection to exchange experiences, covering challenges and lessons learned on the scale up of cash transfers programmes, as well as on the adoption of a systems approach to social protection in their respective countries. The meeting also included cash transfer programme site visits in Zambia and Zimbabwe. The South Sudan team benefited from the presentations and discussions; this experience is expected to enrich the South Sudan Social Protection Agenda, more so as the country rolls out its first Safety Net and Skills Development Project in Identification Promotion of Innovation UNICEF and partners adopted RapidFTR, an open-source mobile phone application and data storage system to collect, sort and share information about unaccompanied and separated children so they can be more quickly registered for services and reunited with their families. The longer children are separated from their families, the more vulnerable they are to violence, economic and sexual exploitation, and trafficking. RapidFTR streamlines and speeds up family reunification and tracing (FTR) efforts. UNICEF and 14 partners are now deploying RapidFTR at scale in one of the most complex family tracing environments in the world. While reunification rates remain low, the upcoming dry season offers an opportunity to enable more reunifications in The use of Rapid SMART assessments where full scale SMART surveys could not be 10

11 undertaken allowed nutrition information to be gathered in insecure areas with a shortened time on the ground. The Rapid SMART has a reduced sample size and measures only anthropometric indicators, with at least one round including mortality data. Priority counties with high levels of food insecurity and no nutrition information such as Fashoda, Leer and Mayandit were assessed during two to three rounds of Rapid SMART to better plan the response in these areas. Connect.Teaching was introduced to overcome challenges related to lack of training opportunities, distance to training centres and lack of teaching resources. In partnership with War Child Holland, Norwegian Refugee Council and the Ministry of Education, UNICEF tabletbased teacher training is currently being piloted for 150 teachers and 45 schools in Eastern Equatoria and Northern Bahr el Ghazal. In 2014, two Information, Communication and Technology (ICT) Centres have opened and teachers commenced training. UNICEF and partners supported the establishment of pump mechanic associations in Northern Bahr el Ghazal, which will create livelihoods for the mechanics while providing sustainable operations and maintenance for communities, local government and NGOs. A local solution to minimize odours and decrease sludge in pit latrines was introduced using Beneficial Microorganisms (BMOs) produced with locally available materials and used for both household and communal pit latrines. BMOs were tested in emergency latrines in IDP camps and PoCs, and found to be highly effective. Support to Integration and cross-sectoral linkages In 2014, UNICEF prioritized its humanitarian response within its cross-sectoral work, coordinated through the Emergency Country Management Team, which met weekly. RRM missions deployed multi-sectoral teams, increasing complementarity of the response. The teams targeted a variety of underlying causes of malnutrition: providing safe water supply, deworming, and counselling on IYCF and good hygiene practices. In response to high under five mortality in Bentiu PoC, UNICEF and partners trained and incentivized 140 community volunteers who undertook 115,968 household visits, screening children for malnutrition, providing key lifesaving messages and making 23,000 referrals of children under five to health facilities. The volunteers were key to lowering under five mortality below the emergency threshold. The model is being scaled up to other IDP sites. UNICEF provided a comprehensive response to the cholera outbreak. UNICEF set up the first Cholera Treatment Centre, with UNICEF staff taking a direct role in case management and training of health workers. UNICEF provided WASH supplies to 970,000 people and supported cholera vaccination for over 120,000 people in PoCs. Social mobilization reached over a hundred thousand households through visits and various media channels, relaying lifesaving messages and encouraging early treatment. In partnership with state Ministries of Health (smohs) social mobilization was also used to identify and refer children with acute malnutrition in high-burden non-conflict-affected states. In the first phase in Central Equatoria State, 57,000 households were reached with key messages on IYCF and hygiene practices. The Education in Emergencies response provided cross-sectoral services including psychosocial support and dissemination of key lifesaving messages in learning spaces, which 11

12 are inclusive of WASH facilities. Advocacy with the GBV, WASH and Camp Coordination and Camp Management Clusters resulted in minimum standards for latrines and the introduction of solar lighting in Malakal PoC. Birth notifications were provided to 131,000 children under five through the collaboration of UNICEF health and child protection colleagues, along with the Government and partners. UNICEF and partners implementing health services in IDP areas successfully advocated for authorization to issue birth notifications on behalf of the Government. UNICEF and the Government of Northern Bahr el Ghazal provided notifications through health facilities and outreach. Service Delivery Pre-crisis, 80 per cent of social services in South Sudan were delivered by NGOs. UNICEF advocated for increased budget allocations to the social sectors while developing government capacity to deliver services at the national, state and county levels. Due to the scale and urgency of humanitarian needs, UNICEF reoriented towards an immediate life-saving response, increasing the delivery of supplies and services with partners and direct implementation. The back-to-basics strategy of the RRM allowed UNICEF to respond where NGOs were not present. RRM missions assessed and immediately delivered an integrated package of services. Wherever possible, partners were supported to re-establish services, with on-going accountability through the Cluster and partnership agreements. Based on mission recommendations, follow-up missions to support sustainability of interventions were conducted. In areas with no partners, community networks were mobilized for follow up. A Rapid Vulnerability Assessment was introduced to monitor vulnerability indicators after RRM missions. If results pass thresholds, UNICEF acted to re-intervene or strengthen partners response. Over 603,000 people, including 132,000 children were reached jointly based on this approach. Many NGOs fled during the worst of the violence, and were unable to re-establish services in conflict-affected states. UNICEF scaled up operational partnerships from 64 to 88, working with Clusters to identify gaps in coverage and encourage partners to fill them. UNICEF and partners reached: 93,204 children with SAM admitted to therapeutic care; 879,865 children vaccinated against measles; 495,750 people were provided with access to water; 139,767 children with emergency child protection services; 77,750 children with access to education in emergencies. UNICEF analysed data from partners on a weekly or monthly basis, through the programme, the Clusters and OCHA. Monitoring visits and spot checks were used to assess the quality of partner interventions. Recommendations for improvements were made, including further trainings tailored to specific needs. In 2015, UNICEF will continue life-saving service delivery. However, given extremely low indicators across the country, focus will also be directed to state-building efforts, including increasing capacity for state-delivered services. Community capacity to initiate and sustain services such as Community-Led Total Sanitation will be scaled up. 12

13 Human Rights-Based Approach to Cooperation The current conflict is a protection crisis. Through the Humanitarian Country Team, using MRM data, UNICEF and other agencies advocated for the expansion of the UNMISS mandate to cover not only PoCs, where children are the majority of residents, but to expand patrols outside of PoCs where most IDPs live, and to proactively de-escalate conflict. UNICEF and UNMISS, as co-chairs of the MRM Country Taskforce, collaborated through joint trainings, field monitoring and advocacy efforts, expanding the network of MRM partners and strengthening the MRM to further inform programme and prevention efforts. UNICEF advocated with all parties to the conflict for an end to violations and for humanitarian access. In May, Opposition Forces committed to ending grave child rights violations. In June, during a Special Representative of the Secretary General for Children and Armed Conflict visit, the Minister of Defence and the Sudan People s Liberation Army (SPLA) recommitted to end grave child rights violations. In September 2014, a Revised Action Plan was endorsed. In November, UNICEF and the Minister of Defence launched the Children Not Soldiers campaign which brings together donors, partners and UN agencies to support the Government s Action Plan. MRM data analyses were consolidated and published in the Secretary General s first Country Report on grave child rights violations in South Sudan in December The integration of the South Sudan Democratic Army (SSDA) Cobra Faction into the SPLA is expected to release up to 3,000 children in Pibor. UNICEF will support the Government to provide comprehensive, rights-based socioeconomic reintegration, in line with the Paris Principles. UNICEF implements its humanitarian response in line with the Core Commitments for Children. All possible efforts are made to ensure the participation of affected communities in the design and implementation of interventions. Communication for development methods help affected populations be aware of their rights and able to demand basic services. The Bill to ratify the Convention on the Rights of the Child was signed; in 2015 UNICEF will support the completion of the ratification process. Following sustained advocacy, Parliament passed the bill to ratify the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) which the President has signed. Gender Mainstreaming and Equality UNICEF in South Sudan mainstreams the unique needs of girls, boys, women and men into all of its programming, with an equity focus to ensuring that girls are able to access services which cultural and social norms often deny them. 1. The Communities Care programme addressed the social norms which perpetuate gender inequality, transforming communities to uphold the rights of girls and women and to prevent sexual violence through structured community dialogue. The end goal of the programme is to create safer communities for girls and women. Three UNICEF staff members are involved in this three year global pilot programme, currently in its second year of implementation. The annual budget is US$1 million, covering two counties in two states (Yei County, Central Equatoria State and Gogorial West County, Warrap State). The first set of research on social norms related to sexual violence was completed in Training for partner staff and service providers began in the last quarter of the year on topics including research ethics, sexual violence, survivor-centred response to GBV and facilitation of community discussion. Community dialogues will start in February

14 2. Menstruation has been identified as one of the key barriers to girls school attendance and attainment. Studies cite poverty, lack of menstrual hygiene management awareness and unavailability of sanitary items as major reasons for girls absenteeism averaging over four days per month. In partnership with WFP, SNV and other education partners, UNICEF provided 8,400 vulnerable adolescent girls with sanitary kits and knowledge on menstrual hygiene management, and trained female community members to make low-cost reusable sanitary wear. This initiative resulted in improved girls attendance and health status as well empowering girls to stay safe and manage their bodies in Eastern Equatoria State and the conflict-affected states of Jonglei, Upper Nile and Unity. Additionally, women in Eastern Equatoria State are able to sell low-cost reusable sanitary wear increasing community awareness for sustainable menstrual management and demand for the low-cost products. The pilot project, using available UNICEF funds and staff, ended in 2014 but will be scaled up through the Back-to-Learning initiative to be launched in January Environmental Sustainability To mitigate the impact of drilling and construction activities, all UNICEF-supported drilling activities are supported by detailed geophysical and hydrogeological studies as well as pump testing of the wells to ensure the water pumping is not exceeding the optimum yield and not damaging aquifers. Sanitation facilities are designed to minimize deforestation by using plastic sheeting and other prefabricated materials for super structures and using plastic latrine slabs. The locations of sanitation facilities are selected to prevent contamination of groundwater. Support was provided to the Municipality of Juba to improve waste management and reduce the risk of disease outbreaks. Discussions are ongoing with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the Mayor s Office to support an integrated waste management programme for Juba. UNICEF also ensured the environmental sustainability of school construction, undertaking Environmental Impact Assessments as part of the Feasibility Study conducted to identify schools as part of the GPE programme. This will ensure that construction activities are designed and executed in an environmentally sound manner. UNICEF-supported schools have water pumps for drinking water to avoid reliance on bottled water. Boreholes are constructed so that wastewater is channelled to nearby vegetable gardens. School construction is based on the use of cement blocks, unlike baked soil blocks that degrade the alluvial soils that would otherwise be used for farming. Environmental education is one of the six themes within the life skills and peace education curriculum. In collaboration with Plan International, UNICEF conducted environmental awareness and education among adolescents and youth that resulted in the distribution and planting of 2,625 tree seedlings in government county headquarters, schools and communities in Eastern Equatoria State. Effective Leadership UNICEF South Sudan Country Programme Management indicators and VISION Performance Management reports were compiled and discussed at monthly Country Management Team (CMT) meetings. The CMT examined and addressed key management issues, reviewed progress against the Management Plan and analysing progress and constraints. Regular Emergency Management Team meetings and action matrices improved the coordination of the Level 3 UNICEF emergency response between Headquarters, Regional Office and the Country 14

15 Office. Weekly Heads of Sections meeting ensured regular follow up on programmatic bottlenecks, with actions regularly tracked. Office statutory committees including the CMT, Zonal Management Team, Contract Review Committee, Programme Cooperation Agreement Review Committee, Central Review Body and the Local Human Resources Development Committee continued to function effectively. The Joint Consultative Committee met four times during the year to further enhance a participatory and enabling work environment. Following the declaration of Level 3 emergency in 2014, UNICEF South Sudan used the Simplified Standard Operating Procedures (SSOPs) in number of areas such as the process to enter into programme cooperation agreements (PCAs), financial management, premises management and recruitment. The SSOPs expedited the signing of shorter-form PCAs; the procurement of supplies and services through ad-hoc Contract Review Committee meetings; the establishment and managing guesthouses; and the recruitment of experienced staff to provide humanitarian support. The Office reviewed its governance structure in the country, zone and field office levels as well as the membership of office statutory committees. A Vision Table of Authority (ToA) and a VISION Roles Mapping Table were developed and briefing sessions held on Segregation of Duties and ToA to increase staff awareness and understanding in the application of the new Internal Controls Policy in the day-to-day business process. The Delegation of Authority Memos were been signed and documented. UNICEF South Sudan reviewed, updated and circulated 16 Standard Operational Procedures (SOPs) regarding the operationalization of VISION. Forty-nine briefing sessions, each attended by an average of 15 staff members, were held on UNICEF rules and regulations and application of newly developed SOPs to increase staff capacity and knowledge. Other management and operation priorities for 2014 included the implementation of the new VISION programme and financial management system. These priorities were monitored through monthly CMT meetings, weekly senior management meetings and monthly Operations and Programme meetings. The Regional Office Operations and Programme team conducted a peer review of programme and operations areas in view of the country office preparing for the internal audit in February Recommendations and observations from Peer Review Reports were reviewed and an action plan prepared. The implementation of recommendations is ongoing. UNICEF also conducted a self-assessment of the Wau Office with the aim of strengthening its control environment. The Business Continuity Plan (BCP) and ICT Disaster Recovery Plan were reviewed, approved and tested and changes in the internal and external operating environment were discussed. The BCP was uploaded to the global website and a copy shared with the UNICEF Kenya Country Office which is a host country for South Sudan. An Enterprise Risk Management session was held and the Risk and Control Library update is on-going. Financial Resources Management UNICEF South Sudan monitors funding to comply with donor conditionalities and maximize utilization. During CMT meetings, funding status, expiring grants, planned/funded amounts, commitments, actual amounts and unutilized balances were reviewed, alerting on arising issues and allowing proactive management. As of end 2014, implementation rates were: Other Resources-Emergency (ORE) 100 per cent; Other Resources-Regular (ORR) 100 per cent; and Regular Resources (RR) 99 per cent. 15

16 Audit peer review recommendations were implemented including training for staff on recommended topics and a Delegation of Authority checklist developed. A bank optimization project supported the replenishment of the office bank accounts. UNICEF South Sudan maintained enough funds just in time to meet programmatic demands for payments. The office worked closely with the UNICEF Division of Financial and Administrative Management (DFAM) to ensure proper month-end, mid-year and year-end closure of activities and updating the SharePoint system with the green mark status ranked by DFAM. Financial resources in the form of cash at bank and Cash on Hand Accounts were safeguarded. Accurate and timely bank reconciliation statements were prepared, approved and submitted to DFAM for all accounts. In November, UNICEF signed an agreement with Galaxy Star International to deliver cash transfers to Field Offices. Previously, staff were carrying cash, exposing them to attack and UNICEF resources to loss, and delaying fund availability causing cancellation or deferral of interventions. A Direct Cash Transfer (DCT) Task Force chaired by the Deputy Representative monitored liquidation of DCTs. The high proportion of long outstanding DCTs, some over three years, required advocacy with national and state governments to liquidate funds. A system was developed to send reminder letters to partners to liquidate DCTs or refund unutilized funds at three months, six months and nine months marks. Outstanding DCTs were reduced from May- December 2014: six to nine month DCTs from 48 to 5.4 per cent; and over nine month DCTs from 18 to 5.1 per cent of total DCTs. This ensured UNICEF did not lose expired funds and restored partners to implement essential activities. Fund-raising and Donor Relations As a result of the large-scale humanitarian crisis, resource mobilization efforts were greatly increased to respond to lifesaving emergency needs of the affected population, with a focus on both traditional and non-traditional donors. Multiple disease outbreaks, including cholera, coupled with a devastating nutrition crisis demanded sustained comprehensive emergency response programmes. Against the 2014 country programme budget, UNICEF South Sudan raised US$156,088,065. Of this, US$8,592,925 was RR, US$27,868,745 was ORR and US$119,626,396 was ORE. Development funding declined as donors responded to the humanitarian crisis and put on hold major development financing, with the majority of the development funding received against previously signed agreements. With the nature of humanitarian funding being largely short-term, and highly earmarked in nature, this made longer-term systems building more challenging. The majority of humanitarian funding was from public sector donors, as well as the Common Humanitarian Fund. Other key donors included the Government of the United States of America (US$46.4 million), the Government of the United Kingdom (US$17.8 million) and the European Commission/ECHO (US$20.5 million). Increased engagement with UNICEF National Committees also yielded critical support, raising the profile of the crisis in South Sudan with seven visits, and raising approximately US$6 million. The majority of development funding was received from the Governments of Qatar, Canada, the Netherlands, and the European Union. 16

17 UNICEF South Sudan placed great emphasis on donor visibility and developed visibility plans for key contributions. Signing ceremonies took place for two multi-year contributions from the USA Government. In addition to traditional visibility practices, UNICEF also strengthened its donor recognition in online media outlets for sustained engagement with an international audience. Evaluation After the Country Programme extension (January 2014-June 2016), UNICEF revised the Integrated Monitoring and Evaluation Plan (IMEP) to ensure it was comprehensive and strategic, addressing knowledge gaps for the remainder of the Country Programme. Thirty-five studies, surveys and evaluations were identified to provide key data and information towards improving the design, implementation, accountability and advocacy of programmes. The IMEP was discussed regularly with sections, including during programme meetings and reviews. On a quarterly basis, the IMEP was discussed in CMTs, which served as a platform to share overall progress; major bottlenecks were also discussed. Given the conflict in 2014, many studies and evaluations had to be rescheduled or cancelled for example, the Maternal Mortality+ Survey planned for early 2014 to provide key data on Millennium Development Goal reporting was cancelled. The Population and Housing Census, for which UNICEF was providing technical and financial support, was postponed indefinitely. Small-scale emergency related studies were prioritized to provide key data for the emergency response, such as the 50 SMART nutrition assessments conducted by UNICEF and other partners to as a basis for the nutrition response. Along with the World Bank, UNICEF is supporting the IDP Survey which will be rolled out in 2015 to generate critical information on displaced children and women in PoCs and the host communities, as well as their intentions on possible voluntary return, to support the return of basic services in these areas. The UNICEF South Sudan programme sections included in the terms of reference how the results from studies and evaluations were to be used. In 2014, a management response was prepared for the only evaluation finalized in 2013 Evaluation of UNICEF programmes to protect children in emergencies. This evaluation received an overall quality rating of Highly Satisfactory by the Global Evaluation Reports Oversight System, and results are being used to enhance child protection in emergency programming. Efficiency Gains and Cost Savings UNICEF South Sudan took steps to apply the Effectiveness and Efficiency approach in 2014, saving over US$1.01 million in annual operations and programme costs, which were instead used to response to the needs of children and women. The following examples provide an indication of measures taken to improve efficiency and save costs: A reduction in the number of Thuraya phones to fill only critical office needs, from 112 phones (US$40,364) to 42 phones (US$8,064), saving US$32,256 on annual subscriptions; Generator and vehicle repair and maintenance contract negotiations with the service provider AAH-I saved US$171,342; 17

18 A lump sum accommodation grant for long-term consultants was introduced that saved US$708,000; Harmonization and standardization of mobile phone use with Vivacell resulted in calling amongst UNICEF staff at a minimum subscription fee; Closure of Wau Guest House saved US$100,000. To leverage the resources and optimise resources of the UN system in South Sudan, the UN Operations Management Team undertook a number of initiatives to manage common services and Long Term Agreements including travel services, banking, telecommunications, security and the UN Clinic. These initiatives resulted in annual saving of approximately US$200,000. Supply Management The consolidated UNICEF supply plan for 2014 was US$44.8 million and the throughput US$43.9 million including institutional contracts of US$13.75 million; US$27.93 million of emergency supplies; and US$2.3 million of cross sectoral supplies. This represents a significant increase from 2013 due to the humanitarian response. UNICEF benefitted from a limited number of Level 3 emergency SSOPs, including the waiver of competitive bidding. Fewer SSOPs were used compared to other operations functions. Procurement included: offshore US$21.3 million; regional US$2.13 million; and local US$4.5 million. The quality and delivery time of offshore supplies reached a target arrival date of 90 per cent. Pre-inspection companies were contracted to inspect regionally and locally procured supplies. US$28.93 million in supplies were dispatched from the five UNICEF warehouses to partners leaving US$7.48 million stock on hand. UNICEF collaborated with Logistics Cluster to store and move supplies by road, air and river. During 2014, the heavier than usual flooding and insecurity rendered large areas of the country inaccessible by road. Supplies were moved by air including pre-fabricated living and office accommodation. RRM missions were provided with prompt supply and logistics support. The main challenges were the destruction of warehouses and looting of supplies during fighting; aging supplies which have accumulated due to the change in programmatic focus; inaccessible roads; limited Logistics Cluster resources; high costs of air transport; and insecurity. Supplies are being distributed as new areas become accessible with the dry season. UNICEF participates in the UN Inter Agency Procurement Group. The main achievements are data consolidation; piggybacking on existing in-country long term agreements; and common solicitations to streamline procurement through a sustainable and transparent system. A planned Inter Agency market survey was delayed to the first quarter of Security for Staff and Premises The outbreak of hostilities on 15 December 2013 raised the risk level of all staff working in South Sudan. When fighting subsided, UNICEF took urgent steps to enhance the safety and security of staff and premises throughout the country. UNICEF enhanced the security in the most affected, destroyed and vandalized field offices in Bentiu, Malakal and Bor. Operations were re-established in shared Humanitarian Hubs within UNMISS safe locations. Security assessments were conducted in all locations and gaps rectified, including the replacement of tent accommodations with pre-fabricated units and the replacement of old vehicles with 18

19 Minimum Operation Security Standards-compliant vehicles. UNICEF increased its dedicated security staff from three to six. All staff were required to complete Basic Security in the Field II; staff traveling to the field must have completed the Safe and Secure Approaches in Field Environments (SSAFE) training. The security staff regularly monitored the security environment and advised staff on necessary precautions. Special considerations were put in place to allow UNICEF to extend its programming to remote and contested areas of the conflict-affected states. Contact was established with all parties to the conflict for security assurances to expand humanitarian operations. Joint security assessment missions were conducted with WFP, UNDSS and other partner organizations to expand programming outside of state capitals in affected States, including for RRMs. These joint assessment missions allowed UNICEF-specific Programme Risk Assessments to be factored into the UNDSS Security Risk Assessments and Quick Security Field Assessment Reports for the RRM missions. Risk mitigation measures for missions to remote, otherwise off-limit areas included acquiring security assurances from key officials in opposition controlled areas and preparing mission members for worse case scenarios. UNICEF is collecting best practices from RRMs and organizing trainings including Table Top Exercises to simulate real situations and to test the UNDSS Extraction Plan from the field. The recruitment of three RRM Security Officers will provide onsite assessment and security support to RRM team members according to the situation on ground allowing UNICEF to further scale up direct implementation. Security enhancements implemented for the country office in Juba due to higher level of risk included: Renewal of the contract with Security Services for continued provision of 24-hour security for the compound; Construction of a concrete perimeter wall and security guards room; Installation and maintenance of additional security lighting systems; Installation and maintenance of CCTV system, Vehicle Underside Scanning System, Pedestrian Walk-through Scanner and Central Smoke Detection System; Expansion of the Safe Room with the reinforcement of the Security Office building to accommodate all staff in case of emergency as the current sub-surface bunker is prone to flooding; Security surveys on two self-contained separate apartment blocks in Juba to concentrate international staff accommodations for ease of security support during emergencies. Outstanding issues include the installation of a baggage scanner due to delayed delivery from overseas and construction of a new surface bunker. Additional security measures will include electronic individual access control to all offices and a GPS based car-logging and tracking system. Human Resources In response to the Level 3 Emergency, supervisors assessed gaps in their response and sourced profiles through consultants, temporary appointments or surge capacity to rapidly scale up programmes. UNICEF South Sudan benefitted from 164 support missions, including 97 from Headquarters and Regional Office; 38 from other UNICEF offices; and 29 secondments and 19

20 stand-by partners. By March 2014, 94 per cent of 2013 Performance Evaluation Reports (PERs) and epas (electronic Performance Appraisal System) were finalized despite the emergency, and 85 per cent of 2014 epas and PAS Phase I were finalized. All staff, including field staff represented by the Chiefs of Field Office and the Staff Association, contributed to Country Programme Management Plan (CPMP) revision. The process began in April, assessing country programme results and the Level 3 emergency response, and recommended structural changes for the Programme Budget Review (PBR), including adequate staff presence in all states to ensure timely delivery of country programme results. There were changes in reporting lines and duties of 68 posts to ensure capacity building of the national staff across sub-offices. Seventy per cent of general service staff and 76 per cent of national professional staff are male. Six Peer Support Volunteers are available to provide counselling to staff. In November, a P3 Staff Counsellor post was established to improve staff welfare, especially in remote duty stations where living conditions are extremely difficult. Challenges encountered include constrained international staff mobility resulting in more than 13 staff completing their tour of duty. Given the emergency nature of the duty station and current Level 3 emergency, this exerted enormous pressure on these staff members, who have served in the country for over two years under stressful circumstances. Efforts were made with Regional Office and Headquarters to facilitate reassignment of affected staff. UNICEF continued as a member of the UN Human Resources Working Group and participates in the common UN agenda including UN Cares. Male and female condoms were available in all offices. One joint learning session was conducted in October for 30 staff members on HIV/AIDS. The office had three UN Cares focal points and seven Post-Exposure Prophylaxis (PEP) Kit custodians. PEP Starter kits were available in all offices. UNICEF participated actively and contributed financial resources to the joint UN World AIDS Day Commemoration, where staff had access to information about HIV/AIDS and voluntary counselling and testing. The Joint Consultative Committee (JCC) met four times to discuss staff wellbeing, including work/life balance, especially for staff based in the field offices, and improving office space and living conditions in sub offices. Frequent and open communication was essential ensuring the Country Management Team and JCC responded to all staff concerns. A Compressed Work Schedule was introduced in August for the four most affected field offices (Bentiu, Bor, Malakal and Mingkamen). Participation of the Staff Association in office committees and management teams provided staff with additional assurance that their voices were being heard. The Staff Association contributed actively to the revised CPMP exercise and the submission of the November PBR. Effective Use of Information and Communication Technology The major information and communication technology initiative in 2014 was the office-wide shift to Microsoft Outlook. This shift simplified synchronization for staff members in field offices, including in emergency-affected areas. No additional software was required for these staff to access their on smartphones and tablets. However, as Outlook is internet-based, bandwidth requirements have increased in a country without ICT infrastructure, especially in emergency-affected and remote areas. The bandwidth remains too narrow, greatly slowing internet use, and constraining Vision transactions. The office is preparing to upgrade bandwidth 20